FORT LAUDERDALE, FLORIDA – There they sat, lined up like well-behaved hounds whose hind-ends never move more than an inch from the spot where they’ve been told to stay. Yet all the while their noses stretched forward as far as manners would allow–testing the air, tasting the adventure they knew awaited just around the bend.

The airboats at Sawgrass Recreation Park seemed to me just the right size for exploring the Everglades: too big to be swallowed all at once by an agitated alligator, yet small enough to provide the agility one might need when navigating reptilian habitat at high speeds.

Though there was one apparent feature of the vessel that had me concerned. It sat awfully close to the water. Whatever I happened to see from the front corner optimal photo-shooting perch I’d claimed might require far less zooming than I’d anticipated.

Not to worry. We soon learned our captain, Debra Dietle, had been driving airboats in this area for more than twelve years. If she wasn’t worried about an alligator climbing aboard, or eating my long lens for lunch, I reasoned that I shouldn’t be either. After a quick safety talk and introduction, and the distribution of foam ear plugs, we were ready to venture out into the legendary River of Grass.

Our airboat hummed and hawed at yet higher speeds as our cheek flesh finally felt the force of travel at forty miles per hour. And then, at once the engine quit, leaving us coasting to a slow stop, a hush falling around us.

Patches of sky shone between patches of grass as we smoothed over the surface in our flat-bottom boat. Small birds flitted from the grass around us as we went. It was peaceful, serene, and to be honest–not at all how I’d imagined an airboat ride would be.

The water beneath us, Captain Debra explained, was much higher than normal for this area. Just two months after Hurricane Irma, which sent three to ten feet of salt water inland and added significant freshwater from the rains, only the tops of the sawgrass were visible above the surface.

The sawgrass, which can grow up to nine or ten feet tall in some parts of the Everglades, is generally three to five feet tall in this area.

The “River of Grass” itself extends 60 miles wide and flows very slowly for 100 miles from Lake Okeechobe through Central Florida down to where it empties into Florida Bay. Classified as “sawgrass prairie,” this heart of the Everglades is flooded by water of varying depths for at least nine months each year.

But tropical storms in the spring and summer of 2017 had already inundated the area with extra water, causing residential flooding and environmental concern well before Hurricane Irma arrived. While the extra water certainly caused problems inland, it was also heating up in the Florida sun while making its slow journey south.

Consequently, the combination of higher water volume and higher winter temperatures has meant significantly more warm water flowing into the delicate ecosystem of Florida Bay.

I had to ask, “Is it a problem for the alligators to have the water so much higher than usual?”

Captain Debra explained that it’s not so much a problem for the alligators themselves, but if the waters had risen like this during the nesting season, it would have certainly spelled trouble for the next generation. Female alligators nest in the higher, denser vegetation where their eggs can remain dry. If the eggs get covered by water, they are no longer viable.

But with the unseasonably warm Everglades winters of the past few years, the alligators had started their nesting season earlier than usual–before the unexpected spring and summer storms raised the water levels.

While they lucked out the last time around, it remains to be seen how the next round of courtship, mating, nesting (usually beginning in April), and weather will play out for the large reptiles.

Once we spotted our first American Alligators, they quickly came gliding in toward us–apparently just as curious about us as we were about them. Thankfully, they expressed no interest in joining  us for the ride.

Unlike the neighboring Big Cypress National Preserve, where numerous species coexist including panthers, squirrels, bears, and deer among others; the sawgrass marshes of the Everglades are home almost exclusively to alligators–and birds.

The diving double-crested cormorants, wading white ibis, and very social vultures are normally common sights around Sawgrass Recreation Park. But at the time of my visit, just two months after Irma had swept over the state, that wasn’t the case at all.

“It’s eerie not seeing these daily birds; they’re normally sitting up in the trees together or flying together.” Captain Debra told us how a family colony of nearly three dozen cormorants they’d see each day near the docks had only ten return after the hurricane. “And I have not seen one ibis back at the park … not one has come back.”

Also dwindling post-hurricane Irma were the numbers of dragon flies, “We should still have millions out here,” she explained, “they’re nature’s mosquito control.”

Still, the beauty of the park astonished me. That the forces of nature I’d watched on the news could have let loose such wrath just weeks before my arrival seemed inconceivable as I looked at the bright puffs of clouds and blue sky on the slow-moving mirror of water beside us.

We ventured on toward an area of higher ground, an island-like clump of dense vegetation topped with shrubs and small trees. Captain Debra explained this was where we would normally see bigger birds and lots of them. We drifted slowly by searching for signs of returning raptors and water birds.

And that’s when we saw it: the first osprey returned to this portion of the park since the hurricane.

We sat in awe for a moment, silent but for the clicking of a half dozen cameras. I could only imagine what this creature had witnessed over the past two months, the story of its journey to wherever it had fled for its life. And, sitting there at the end of a broken tree branch, the story of its present in the ever-changing Everglades.

When I spoke with Captain Debra this week, she told me that some ibis had finally returned to the park, but oddly enough they didn’t appear until late December. The double-crested cormorants and vultures still had not returned in their original numbers. Unfortunately, the winter brought with it even more rain, and the water level remains close to what I saw during my visit.

The good news, she reported, was that they had finally seen much-needed cold winter weather for the first time in two years, including five days of temperatures in the 40s (Fahrenheit). While shorts and sandals were perfectly adequate for work over the recent overly warm winters, she said she’s more than happy to need a jacket and long pants on the airboat these days. “I’m losing my tan for the first time in years,” she laughed and then added, “but that’s a good thing.”

If you go:

Sawgrass Recreation Park is about 30 minutes east of Fort Lauderdale on US Highway 27. The park is open daily except for Thanksgiving and Christmas, and in times of inclement weather (call if uncertain). The most popular tour here is the 30-minute airboat ride, which includes access to the exhibits area with daily shows and special guests visiting from a local wildlife rescue group.

For an even wilder ride, consider joining one of their Gator Nights trips departing Wednesday and Saturday nights, or schedule your family’s own private Red-Eye evening tour customized for your group for one hour or longer. Child discounts are given for kids 4 to 12 years, and children 3 and younger are free. Details and online discounts available at www.evergladestours.com. For more of my recommended Florida family activities, click here.

Thanks to Greater Fort Lauderdale and Sawgrass Recreation Park for letting me tag along on this ride.

Pinnable for Your Trip Planning:

The post Into the Everglades: A Post-Hurricane Airboat Adventure at Sawgrass Recreation Park appeared first on Family Travel 411.

View from CA Highway 50 nearing South Lake Tahoe

Are we almost there yet??? Please, please, just let us stop and play in some TAHOE SNOW!

A side road after the “snowpocalpyse 2017”– a good day to stick to the main roads driving around Tahoe…

Hey! This looks like a good place to stop for “a little” snow…

Expert car trip packer–this dad is ready for fun at every stop.

Good thing Dad packed the sleds on top. You never know when you might need to suddenly stop and sled.

Whose woods these are we cannot tell! The trees are covered in snow so well…

Yeah, baby! We found, oh, just a little snow!

Our human snow gauges.

Let’s see just how deep it is!

Overly ambitious?

Whew! This is some deep snow!

South fork of the American River lined with snow.

Hey, what’s mom doing standing waist deep in the powder with her camera–next to the river?!

South Fork of the American River with snow and ice

Mom, next time you should bring snow shoes!

Snow already melts from the tallest trees touched by the sun

All right, everyone…let’s finish the drive now. We’re almost to South Lake Tahoe!

Barely out of the car and look! A “powder puff”!

We made it! And look at all the great snow right outside the hotel! (See more recommendations for activities, dining & lodging in the related post The 411 on South Tahoe with Kids – Winter Edition.

Snow sisters!

And then there were two…

Kids and snow. A match made in Tahoe.

All right, time for some more snowslporation – and snowdigging – and snowEATING!

Stay hydrated. Eat snow.

Ack! This stuff is COLD! Brain freeze!

Do you wanna build a snow dad???

Quick! Now’s our chance to make a snow man! (AKA snow dad).

Great sledding!

Sweet! We can just walk to this great sledding hill from our hotel room in three minutes! (Right behind Heavenly Village.) And we can sled as long as we please–and it’s free!

Sunset. #snowfilter

And so the sun sets on a great first day of snow play…

Ice skating at Heavenly Village.

Time to stroll on down through Heavenly Village…

Cheers!

…and let Mom and Dad enjoy a pint by the fire while we await our dinner at Base Camp Pizza. What a perfect day!

There’s still plenty of time to plan your family’s snow vacation in South Lake Tahoe, one of our favorite winter wonderlands. And if you go, don’t overlook the recommendations in The 411 on South Lake Tahoe with Kids – Winter Edition and How South Tahoe’s “The Loft” and “Magic Fusion” Get it Right for Families.

Tahoe South Snow Story – South Lake Tahoe with Kids

The post South Lake Tahoe Snow Story – In Photos appeared first on Family Travel 411.

UTAH, Hiking Bryce Canyon National Park with Kids –  The Navajo Loop trail is short, vertical, and offers some gorgeous hiking with changing vistas within Bryce Canyon. With the rim elevation varying between 8,000 and 9,000 feet and intense summer sun, we planned to take it slow and easy with the kids.

To our surprise, they did great on the hike and we didn’t even have to carry the 4-year-old out (not very far anyway…). Starting out at Sunset Point, near the Visitor Center, and near the historic Lodge at Bryce Canyon, the Navajo Loop is a good bet for many families visiting Bryce Canyon National Park with kids.

Follow along on our journey in photos!

Shortly after breakfast, before the temperature rises too high, we begin our quest to find the bottom of Bryce Canyon.

Just a short distance into our hike, the Navajo Loop trail leads us right through a kid-size tunnel.

More layers of switchbacks weave in and out of increasingly precious shade as we descend farther into Bryce Canyon.

Looking up as we descend into the canyon, only fellow hikers on the Navajo loop can make sense of the tremendous scale of things here.

Looking up at the crags and hoodoos against the sky becomes even more spectacular than viewing Bryce Canyon from above.

At last we reach the canyon floor, or so it seems. The shade is sumptuous.

When you think it can’t get any narrower, the sky nearly disappears for a stretch.

While we stop for a water break, the kids discover the rocks will crumble with ease into a pinkish powder. Assuming this is what was worn as prehistoric sunscreen, they rub the powder all over their legs before continuing the hike.

Trees stretch high through the canyon slot, absorbing what light they can.

Just as it begins to feel like the walls are closing in, an enormous doorway opens before us.

As the canyon opens up, more trees appear along our pathway.

At last, we reach the bottom of the Navajo Loop trail. The kids explore the parched riverbed before beginning the slow work of our ascent.

Find more family travel inspiration in these posts:

Five Great National Park Vacations for Families

Zion National Park with Kids Family Vacation Guide

Dinosaur National Monument with Kids: Tips from our Jurassic Pilgrimage

Fourth Graders FREE in National Parks with Every Kid Outdoors Pass

Mount Rushmore with Kids & The Black Hills Family Vacation Guide

Glacier National Park with Kids Family Vacation Guide

Yosemite National Park with Kids Family Vacation Guide

Sequoia National Park with Kids Family Vacation Guide

California with Kids: Ten Unforgettable Family Vacation Ideas

Hiking to Whiskeytown Falls – Shasta County, California

Some things you might want to bring:

Ten Things You Should Pack for a Road Trip with Kids

Review of Merrell Siren Sport 2 Women’s Hiking Shoes

Tips for Buying Sunglasses for Kids

Anatomy of a Great Travel Hat for Kids

The post Bryce Canyon National Park with Kids | Hiking the Navajo Loop Trail appeared first on Family Travel 411.